1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system for attaching roofing shingles to a flat roof surface. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system and apparatus for facilitating simplified, accurate installation of asphalt roofing shingles to a surface, and for permitting simplified replacement of selected shingles so installed.
2. Description of the Background Art
The roof is a critical part of any building that must be maintained and eventually replaced either in part or in whole. However, the conventional systems and methods for attaching traditional asphalt shingles to a roof is not conducive to simple and economical replacement of individual shingles. The conventional methods for attaching shingles to a roof involve starting at the bottom of the roof and moving up towards the apex of the roof, overlapping and nailing each row of shingles over the previous row.
One significant problem with conventional methods is that they do not allow replacement of just a few shingles, which may become damaged from time to time, although the roof in general remains in good condition. Instead, typically entire sections of shingles, from the apex of the roof down to the shingle being replaced must be removed. This process is quite inefficient, requiring a considerable amount of time and materials just to replace a few bad shingles.
Another problem with conventional methods is that the act of nailing shingles to the roof, each time shingles are replaced, creates numerous holes in the roof of the building, and also uses a lot of fasteners such as nails, staples, etc. During the conventional process of replacing. shingles, many un-filled holes are created as old shingles are torn up and then new shingles are nailed back down again. These un-filled holes often create problems, in terms of water leakage, deteriorated strength of roof boards, etc.
Still another problem is that asphalt shingles create excessive and unnecessary waste in landfills. Although attempts have been made to recycle the shingles, the process is not very efficient, as foreign materials, such as the nails, staples, etc. used to attach the singles to a roof, must be removed before the shingles can be recycled. The removal of these foreign objects incurs substantial extra costs and frustrates the recycling process, as a practical matter.
A limited number of alternative shingling systems are known. For example, Nicholson, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,956,913 and 5,685,117, disclose a self-sealing roof shingle mounting system that includes a shingle attachment strip and shingles. The attachment strip forms a U-shaped clip and is attached to the roof such that the clip opening faces the roof apex. The strip further includes a gasket formed from weather resistant sealing material. The shingles are preferably metal, with the upper edge on each shingle forming an inverted U-shaped clip. A shingle is attached by slidably interconnecting the shingle clip with that of an attachment strip.
Toscano, U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,848, discloses a roofing system and shingle that includes one attachment strip per roof section connected to the roof near the apex. The top row of shingles attaches to the strip, and subsequent rows attach to the previous row of shingles by means of flanges attached to the bottom edge of the previous row of shingles. Each shingle interconnects on its sides with adjacent shingles, and each shingle is also nailed or otherwise attached to the roof. The shingles are also preferably made from aluminum or another lightweight metal.
Although these patented systems provide some benefits, they also have special disadvantages associated therewith. For example, these systems require special components, namely the metal shingles, instead of utilizing readily available common-place materials. Also, none of the other systems specifically address all the problems of conventional methods, as discussed above. For example, the Toscano system still requires the nailing down of new shingles each time the shingles are replaced, which results in many problematic unfilled holes in the roof, as explained above. In addition, the other systems do not adequately provide for simple installation of shingles and simple replacement of individual shingles or isolated groups of shingles, without incurring extra cost and waste. Furthermore, none of the other systems improve the recycling process of the waste that is created. Therefore, many of the problems of conventional methods discussed above still remain.
As will be understood, a need still exists in the art for an improved roofing system using asphalt shingles, that overcomes the above problems. Furthermore, the roofing system should be relatively simple to install initially, simple and efficient for allowing replacement of individual shingles from time to time, and inexpensive to manufacture.
The present invention provides a shingle mounting system to allow a user thereof to install and replace asphalt roofing shingles. A shingle mounting system in accordance with the present invention, generally, includes asphalt shingles and securing strips for securing and removing shingles on a roof. The present invention further provides a kit including shingles, securing strips, and at least two adjustable spacer tools.
The asphalt shingles, according to the invention, are identical to one another and include spaced holes at the top of the shingle to enable attachment to the securing strips. The securing strips, which are preferably aluminum or plastic, are identical and are provided for attaching shingles to a roof surface. The securing strips include a base portion and a folding edge. A bight is provided at the back of the securing strip to interconnect the folding edge and the base portion, and to allow enough space therebetween to accept a shingle. The folding edge is pivotally attached to the top of the bight, and is foldable relative to the base portion of the strip.
The securing strips further include multiple projecting members, attached either to the upper surface of the base portion or to the lower surface of the folding edge. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, each of the projecting members includes a pin, and an offset end cap attached to a free end of the pin. The end cap is larger in diameter than the pin, forming a lip. This lip serves to retain the shingle in place on the securing strip, as the hole in the shingle is dimensioned to allow easy manipulation of the shingle over the end cap onto the pin, yet to restrict the shingle from coming off the pin easily. The folding edge is then folded over the shingle edge to releasably lock the shingle to the securing strip.
The shingle mounting system according to the invention reduces the need for extraneous fasteners such as conventional nails or staples. Reducing the number of nails of staples needed to secure each shingle to the roof is advantageous in many ways. One advantage is that replacing one shingle or a group of shingles is made simple, since only those shingles to be replaced need to be removed from the roof. Reducing the needed number of nails or staples also decreases the number of unfilled holes in the roof. Additionally, the number of nails used on a roof is decreased by as much as two-thirds since only the securing strips are nailed to the roof. Moreover, costs are cut by increasing the efficiency of recycling asphalt shingles, as fewer foreign materials such as nails, staples, etc. need to be sorted out during the recycling process. As a result, roofing manufacturers will purchase less raw materials, thereby reducing the amount of petroleum products purchased and depleted from the Earth""s natural resources. Finally, this system can be used with materials that are readily available, after a minor modification of such materials, which will make production of the needed pieces fast, easy, and economical.
The present invention also contemplates a kit for attaching shingles to a roof surface, which includes securing strips, shingles, and at least two securing strip adjustable spacer tools. The adjustable spacer tools are primarily made of two telescoping channeled pieces nested together, which are an inside piece and an outside piece.
The outside piece has a radius slot at one end thereof, to allow attachment of the tool to a securing strip at one of the strip""s projecting members. The outside piece also has a hole formed through a side wall thereof, in the end of the piece opposite the radius slot, to accept a fastener therethrough for attaching it to the inside piece.
The inside piece includes a nut assembly that slides along the length of the tool. This inside piece fits inside the outside piece and connects thereto via the nut assembly. The effective length of the tool may be adjusted by loosening the nut assembly, and then sliding the inside piece relative to the outside piece. This adjustable length permits the tool to be adapted to be used with different sizes of shingles.
In a conventional installation, the placement of each row of shingles must be hand measured, to ensure that the row is properly spaced and parallel to the previous row.
By contrast, using the adjustable spacer tools and shingle mounting system according to the present invention, only the placement of the securing strip for the first row needs to be measured. After the first row, the tools are used to place the remaining securing strips.
These tools make initial shingle installation simple and accurate.
Furthermore, these measuring tools are re-usable and adjustable in length to accommodate different sizes and brands of shingles.
For a more complete understanding of the present invention, the reader is referred to the following detailed description section, which should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the following detailed description and in the drawings, like numbers refer to like parts.